1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a tape-shaped label producing device for printing characters and symbols on a tape which serves as a printing medium, and more particularly to performing multi-color printing by printing while exchanging a plurality of ribbon cassettes provided with different colored ink ribbons.
2. Description of the Related Art
Japanese Patent Application (Kokai) No. HEI-5-34994 describes a tape cassette housing an ink ribbon wound around a ribbon spool and a print tape, which serves as a print medium, wound around a tape spool. A thermal head is used to print marks and characters such as characters and symbols on the print tape via the ink ribbon. This tape-shaped label printing device is suitable for making labels to adhere to file tabs. It includes a keyboard, a display, and a printing mechanism of the thermal printing type, and is configured to print characters, marks, and the like in a variety of font styles and sizes on a printing tape medium having widths such as 6, 9, 12, 18, and 24 mm.
The tape-shaped label prepared by printing characters is used not only on the spines of files but can also be adhered to cassette tapes, video tapes, or to their cases. Furthermore, it is conceivable to print character trains by partially changing print color according to recorded content of the corresponding tape or to the category of the tape to obtain a more colorful appearance.